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Ryanair adds business traveler tickets - with perks

Dublin-based Ryanair, the ultra-budget European airline in a midst of a service and manners makeover, has introduced a new ticket category with a bevy of extras aimed at business travelers, which already make

Dublin-based Ryanair, the ultra-budget European airline in the midst of a service and manners makeover, has introduced a new ticket category with a bevy of extras aimed at business travelers, which already make up 25% of the airline's customers.

The airline's Business Plus tickets start at around $95, while the zero-frills, regular fares can be as low as $16. Yet the new ticket category includes a bundle of the "optional" services for which the airline usually charges hefty fees.

Business Plus passengers do not pay a fee (which can range from $20 to $75) to check a bag weighing up to 20 kilograms (about 44 pounds) and receive priority boarding, premium seats and access to priority security lanes at some airports.

The perk most likely to appeal to business travelers, though, is the flexibility the non-refundable Business Plus ticket offers to those wanting or needing to make flight changes. Booked flights can be changed free of charge, although fees for fare differences will apply and, on the day of travel, there is no charge to take an earlier or later flight.

In a statement, Kenny Jacobs, Ryanair's chief marketing officer, said the new Business Plus tickets are part of the airline's commitment to improve the customer experience under the "Always Getting Better" program introduced in 2013. That evolving effort includes some lowered fees, a PayPal payment option, a new website, a new app with mobile boarding passes and services and discounts for families.